328 



Garden and Forest. 



[July lo, if 



diiccd no results. A new set of seedlings was obtained from 

 the seeond eross, and among them were some very remark- 

 able and lieautiful plants. From this sowing came Alphonse 

 Lavallec, Michel Buchner, President Grevy, Pyramidal, M. 

 Maximc Cornu, etc. Here we have, in addition to the form 

 and color of the flower, remarkable variations. The corolla- 

 lobes in one variety are round and Hat, resembling a Ranuncu- 

 lus ; they form in another a globular head, with the lobes all 

 incurved ; in another they are all reflexed, and in another they 

 are crumpled. 



I will not give now a detailed description of each of these 

 varieties ; and it need be said only that we are constantly ex- 

 perimenting with double-flowered Lilacs, and that each spring- 

 time sees a new set of flowers produced, with forms and colors 

 entirely imknown before. Nearly all the shades of color found 

 in the flowers of single Lilacs have been produced already in 

 this new race. Shades of blue are represented by A. Lavallde, 

 Michel Buchner, President Grgvy and Leon Simon. The darkest 

 reds appear in Comte Horace de Choiseul and La Tour d' 

 Auvergne ; a delicate rose in Virginite ; and we have now ob- 

 tained a variety with large, pure blue flowers. This has not 

 been sent out yet, but it will appear next week at the Exposition 

 in Paris. 



Nancy, April i8th, 18S9. V. Lemome. 



' Entomological. 



Cut-worms. 



'HPHIS is the popular and expressive term usually employed 

 -^ to designate the larvae of certain species of the Lepidop- 

 terous family, Noctuidce, and it is based upon their practice of 

 eating off young plants at the level of the ground. The more 

 succulent the plant, the greater the danger from Cut-worm. Usu- 

 ally the complaints come in just after plants are set out, and I 

 myself have seen a field of young plants set out one evening 

 cut off to the extent of fully one-half by the next morning. 

 The explanation is simple : many of the larvae of Noctuidce ox^ 

 hatched in the autumn and hibernate about one-third or one- 

 half grown. They are voracious in spring, and, after a cleared 

 spot of ground is planted, the only vegetation on it must suf- 

 fer. Other larvae hatch early in spring and feed on grass, 

 weeds and whatever may be on the ground until it is cleared 

 for the garden plants. Then the enforced fast until vegetation 

 returns to their neighborhood makes them dangerous to what- 

 ever is set out. They are nocturnal in habit, lying hid just 

 under the surface of the ground during the day, and feeding 

 at night. In the morning they can be most usually found at 

 or near the base of the plants cut off by tfiem during the night. 

 Various means have been tried to keep them from the plants 

 — Hme, salt, gas-tar and a variety of other repellants have been 

 employed, all with a variable, usually small, degree of success. 

 Later, as the habits of the worms became better known, traps 

 were prepared for them. Holes were driven with a dibble, 

 around the newly-set plants, and the Cut-worms wandering 

 about fell into them, and, being unable to climb up the smooth 

 sides, perished there. Traps were set in the form of chips 

 and short pieces of board, which proved convenient hiding 

 places for the larvae, and there they could be readily found 

 dui-ing the day and destroyed Still later, balls of grass and 

 succulent leaves were scattered about the fields, and there the 

 worms congregated, and were easily destroyed during the day. 

 Most recently, the grass balls were poisoned, by being soaked 

 in a pail of water into which a tablespoonful of London Purple 

 had been stirred, and the Cut-worms were thus killed without 

 the labor attendant upon a daily visitation of the lures. The 

 trapping system with the aid of poisoned lures has, on the 

 whole, proved most satisfactory; but, as in the case of aU appli- 

 cations of insecticides, the element of time is a most important 

 factor, and in many cases really determines success or failure. 

 There is compa^ratively little success from lures placed after 

 a field has been set out and where vegetation has started, since 

 the worms will prefer young, growing plants, to the lures, and 

 after the larvae become full grown and ready for pupation, lures, 

 of course, fail in attracting more than a very few belated speci- 

 mens. The proper time for a Cut-worm campaign is indicated 

 Ijy what has been said in the previous part of the paper. Just 

 after the ground has been prepared for the crop to go in it, 

 and while it is clear and free from vegetation — if possible only 

 a day or two before planting — the poisoned lures should be 

 spread about liberally, and the vast majority of all the Cut- 

 worms in the prepared ground will be attracted and destroyed. 

 It is, of course, not likely that the destrucdon will be complete, 

 but the percentage of plants lost will be very much lessened, 

 and will be insignificant in comparison to the damage that 

 would have been otherwise caused. It has quite frequently 



happened that fully-grown larvae have been sent me, and, 

 after recommending lures, I received word that they did not 

 attract. The explanation in such cases has been given : the larvae 

 were ready for pupation and their work had ceased. Lures are 

 always successfid in proportion to the lack of other vegetable 

 matter in an infested field ; and they are more successful when 

 used early in the stage of growth than when the larvae approach 

 maturity. For the readers of this paper tlie species of Cut- 

 worm is not important. They have all similar habits, and 

 the same remedy is applicable to nearly all of them — cer- 

 tainly to all cutting plants at the level of the groimd. 

 Rutgers College. John B. Smith. 



Foreign Correspondence. 



London Letter. 

 T^HERE was a bright display of flowers at the last meeting 

 -'- of the Royal Horticultural Society, but a conspicuous 

 absence of new Orchids, although this date was fixed for Mr. 

 Harry Veitch's paper on " The Cultivation of Orchids." Such 

 Orchid fanciers as Baron Schroeder and Sir Trevor Lawrence 

 do not give the public a treat very often, and, considering the 

 risk that attends the transportation of Orchids in flower (in 

 most cases of enormous value) for a journey of thirty miles, it 

 is not surprising that these two staunch supporters of the 

 society do not show more frequently. Among the few 

 Orchids sent yesterday M^as a remarkable group of some two 

 dozen specimens of EpidendriC7n vitellinum majus, every plant 

 carrying tall branched spikes of large orange-vermilion flowers. 

 R.arely, indeed, has such a perfect group of this Orchid been 

 exhibited, and it is evident that the grower has hit upon the 

 peculiar treatment this Mexican species requires. I could not 

 ascertain how long the plants had been imported, but the bulbs 

 seem to have been home-grown. If Mr. Partington can show 

 this same group in such perfect condition five years hence, he 

 might well lay claim to being the champion grower of this 

 fastidious plant, which, though it grows well for a time, is, like 

 Cattleya citrina from the same country, not to be depended 

 upon for a great number of years. Cattleya Mossice Schroeder- 

 iana was shown fairly well, but I fail to see much distinction 

 in this variety, so named, from many others one could single 

 out of a large collection. It has certainly a large, fine flower, 

 and there is a delicacy about the lilac-mauve tint of the broad 

 sepals, but the lip is not nearly so richly adorned with gold and 

 purple as many unnamed forms I have lately seen. 



Amongst a collection of Tea Roses from the well-known 

 Tea Rose-grower, Mr. Prince, of Oxford, was the new white 

 sport from the old Souvenir d'un Ami, which is named Souv- 

 enir de S. A. Prince. Mr. Prince catalogues it as "Undoubt- 

 edly the finest white Tea Rose offered to the public of late 

 years, as it possesses all the good qualities of Souvenir d'un 

 Ami combined with a more robust growth." This advertise- 

 ment is endorsed by our best Rose growers, some of whom 

 sat on yesterday's coinmittee when a first-class certificate was 

 proposed for it and carried unanimously. It is indeed a lovely 

 Rose, rivaling the favorite Niphetos, with even greater depth 

 and substance in the flowers, its snowy petals set oft' by the 

 broad, deep-green foliage. The other Tea Roses from 

 Oxford included some perfect blooms of two of the loveliest 

 Teas that Mr. Bennett has put into commerce. These are 

 Princess of Wales and Princess Beatrice. The former has a 

 strong resemblance to Comtesse de Nadaillac ; indeed, as the 

 blooms were ranged side by side it needed a second look to 

 discern the difference. Another Rose of quite a different 

 stamp that is worthy of note is Paul's Single White, a most 

 valuable addition to our list (never too long) of hardy climbing 

 Roses. This one has pure white flowers, nearly three inches 

 across, produced plentifully on slender branches that have a 

 decided rambling tendency. When I first saw it I thought it 

 was a large form of the Rocky Mountain Rubus deliciosus un- 

 til I saw the foliage. 



The chief task of the floral committee centred in singling 

 out the best varieties of Paeonies, Pyrethrums and Delphini- 

 ums from a magnificent collection of flowers occupying a 

 space of 500 square feet shown by the great raisers of these 

 plants, Messrs. Kelway of Langport, a favorable spot in wild 

 Somersetshire. For large size of bloom, for delicacy of tint 

 and for fragrance, no hardy flower, except, perhaps, the Rose, 

 can equal these double Paeonies, which have all originated 

 from the flimsy single European and Chinese species. The 

 best varieties grown, as Kelway sends them to town, have 

 blooms as big as a child's head, a solid mass of petals, with a 

 delightful blending of soft tints. Usually there is a central tuft 

 of small petals surrounded by a row of broad or guard petals 

 of a different color, and one of the best examples of this is in 



